4 ❙ EggIndustry
5 cage-free aviary facts
egg producers should know
As U.S. egg producers ponder a move out of cages, equipment
suppliers share lessons learned about cage-free aviaries.
BY AUSTIN ALONZO
Like it or not, cage-free is becoming the defining trend
in the U.S. egg industry, and the country's producers
will need to adapt operations and housing to supply
their customers.
In early May 2016, the U.S. Department of
Agriculture's (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service
estimated 176.5 million cage-free layers would
be required by 2025 to supply all of the cage-free
purchase pledges made by U.S. retailers, foodservice
outlets, distributors and food manufacturers. Currently,
the USDA estimates the country's cage-free nonorganic layer flock at approximately 18.0 million hens
and growing rapidly.
Can a cage-free housing system have a
door?: www.WATTAgNet.com/
G Baden, Freeimages.com
articles/26550
To accommodate these purchase pledges, egg producers must decide quickly which type of cage-free
housing system they should use to supplement, or replace, their cages.
Egg Industry is publishing a series of articles discussing the advantages
and disadvantages
of three types
of cage-free
housing systems: aviaries,
floor systems and combination, or combi, systems.
This article focuses on aviaries.
Egg Industry surveyed cage-free housing manufacturers from around the world to gather their input on their systems. Big Dutchman Inc., Farm
Innovation Team GmbH (FIT), Jansen Poultry
Equipment, Valco Companies Inc./Valli Spa, Potter's
Poultry International, Tecno Poultry Systems LLC,
Vencomatic Group, and Hellmann Poultry GmbH &
Co. KG responded to the survey.
1
What aviaries look like
While there is significant variance depending on the manufacturer, aviaries provide a multi-tiered environment for hens that
allow for higher housing density per cubic foot than
floor and nest systems, but less density than cages and
some combi-systems. Generally, aviaries feature egg
and manure belts underneath the housing tiers as well
as feed and water systems to manage the bird's biological needs. Unlike cage housing, there is no permanent
"front" to the system confining birds to the system
full-time.
Aviaries are outfitted with perches, scratch pads
and nesting areas designed so hens can express all of
their natural behaviors. Many have ramps for birds to
move between the tiers of the system. Some are outfitted with closing doors for temporary confinement of
the animals, but the feature is controversial among
groups that certify an operation is humane.
www.WATTAgNet.com ❙ June 2016

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page.
If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.